Nov. 23, 2008
COLLEGE STATION - The eighth-ranked Texas A&M women's swimming & diving team earned a second place finish at the 2008 Art Adamson Invitational held at the Student Rec Center this weekend.
The Aggies won more races than any other team at the meet (9 of 18) however sixth-ranked California's depth proved enough to top the home team, 1,024-919. No. 17 Michigan finished third with 613.5 points followed by No. 16 SMU (493), LSU (377.5), Purdue (204), and Washington (168). Stanford's divers earned enough points (43) to finish eighth in the team standings with UCLA ninth (17) and Ohio State 10th (13).
Aggie senior Triin Aljand (Tallinn, Estonia) wowed the crowd for the third straight day as she became the fifth-fastest 100-yard freestyler in NCAA history. Aljand turned in a 50 split of 22.72 on her way to a Texas A&M school, and Student Rec Center Natatorium, record time of 47.35. Over the past three days, Aljand has put together one of the greatest individual meets by a female sprinter in NCAA history, producing times that rank, or would have ranked, her among the top five in NCAA history in all three of her primary events.
Two-time NCAA qualifier Emily Neal (Plano) got the Aggies out to a great start by turning in the fastest 200-yard backstroke of her career. Neal blew by the NCAA consideration standard of 1:57.91, and her old personal best of 1:56.53, by hitting the wall in 1:54.73. Fellow backstroker Megan Latone (Austin), a freshman, dropped more than six seconds off her old personal best, finishing sixth in an NCAA consideration time of 1:57.77.
Four-time Big 12 breaststroke champion Alia Atkinson (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) finished off an undefeated fall season in her specialty stroke, taking first in the 200-yard breast in 2:12.46. Sophomore Rebekah Love (Conroe) was sixth in 2:20.25, also a lifetime best mark.
A&M closed the meet by going under the old pool record in the 400-yard freestyle relay. The group of Christine Marshall (Newport News, Va.), Marissa Jasek (San Antonio), Sarah Woods (Birmingham, Ala.), and Aljand finished second to California in 3:15.13, the second-fastest time in the country.
Sophomore Casey Hurrell-Zitelman (San Antonio) placed third in the 1,650-yard freestyle, swimming a time of 16:30.22. Her time ranks as the fifth-fastest in A&M history. Hurrell-Zitelman placed eighth in the 200-yard breaststroke later in the evening as well.
Freshman Rita Medrano (Aguascalientes, Mexico) was the Aggies' top finisher in the 200-yard butterfly, hitting the wall seventh in 2:00.92. Medrano set a lifetime-best of 2:00.67 during morning prelims, ranking her No. 6 in A&M history.
Junior diver Haley Haynes (The Woodlands) earned her third top eight finish of the weekend, setting an A&M school record in the process. Haynes turned in a score of 220.50 on the platform to set an A&M record in the event for five dives to finish in eighth place.
Aggie U.S. Olympian Christine Marshall earned a win in the consolation final of the 100-yard freestyle with an NCAA consideration time of 49.24. Senior teammate Marissa Jasek cleared the 50-second barrier for the time in her career, taking third in the consolation final in 49.97.
With the Adamson invite complete, A&M's fall season comes to a close. They will next contest a full meet as a team during their winter training trip in Miami in early January.